Bush Defends Brother Against Donald Trump’s 9/11 Charges

Jeb Bush called Donald Trump’s comments criticizing President George W. Bush over 9/11 “pathetic” in a tweet Friday and praised his brother, the former president, for keeping the country safe following the attack.

Trump’s comments came during an interview with Bloomberg in which he said, “When you talk about George Bush, I mean, say what you want, the World Trade Center came down during his time.”

Challenged during the interview on seeming to Blame the 43rd president for the terrorist attack, Trump said, “He was President, OK? Don't blame him or don't blame him, but he was President. The World Trade Center came down during his reign.”

How pathetic for @realdonaldtrump to criticize the president for 9/11. We were attacked & my brother kept us safe.

Earlier Friday, Jeb Bush criticized Trump generally for being light on specifics when it comes to his presidential platform.

“I don't know about Donald Trump's views of leadership because he talks about himself the whole time, rather than what he would do,” Bush told CBS News.

Bush regularly says he’s proud of his brother and appreciates the former president’s help in fundraising during the campaign, but he has also made differentiating himself from both his brother and his father a key element of his campaign.

“People know me as George's boy and George's brother,” Bush said Friday to CBS. “They don't know that I was an effective conservative governor that disrupted the old order in Florida.”

On the campaign trail, the former Florida governor says touting his record will prove persuasive to voters, especially, he says, when they think about who should be sitting behind the “big desk” in the Oval Office – contrasting Trump as just “a loud talker” and “a big personality.”

Trump responded on Twitter Friday evening, repeating his comments — and then some.

.@JebBush, At the debate you said your brother kept us safe- I wanted to be nice & did not mention the WTC came down during his watch, 9/11.